Security Council establishes Intervention Brigade in eastern DRC

The Security Council has adopted a resolution which provides for the creation of an Intervention Brigade to address the problem of armed groups in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Council members on Thursday unanimously voted in favour of the resolution establishing the brigade within the UN peacekeeping mission in the country.

Hervé Ladsous, head of UN peacekeeping, spoke to journalists following the meeting.

"This, of course, is a very new tool because it means for the first time that there will be a peace enforcement capacity which will carry out targeted offensive operations, either in support of the Congolese army or unilaterally, in order to neutralize the armed groups, the negative forces that have created so much suffering over the years."

Mr. Ladsous said the Intervention Brigade will consist of more than 3,000 personnel including battalions from South Africa, Tanzania and Malawi, operating under a single command.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the resolution, saying it sets out a new, comprehensive approach to address the root causes of instability in the eastern DRC and the Great Lakes region.